Corrupt Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and her former staffers will be reimbursed nearly $900,000 in legal fees related to bid-rigging charges.
Last year Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg (D) transferred the case to Ken Paxton’s office so it didn’t ‘fall through the cracks’ when she left office this year.
However, County Commissioners voted 3-1 to reimburse Hidalgo and her three former staffers $877,402 for legals fees related to the case after a separate prosecutor dropped the charges.
Hidalgo’s office was embroiled in a bid-rigging scandal.
Lina Hidalgo’s top three staffers were indicted in April 2022 after prosecutors expanded the investigation into an $11 million ‘vaccine outreach contract’ awarded to one of the judge’s political cronies.
While Hidalgo was threatening to jail and fine people for violating her Covid rules, she was secretly trying to award one of her political cronies, Felicity Pereyra, who founded Elevate Strategies, an $11 million ‘vaccine outreach’ contract.
Hidalgo ultimately panicked and canceled the $11 million vaccine contract after questions were raised that it was with a one-person firm with no experience.
Hidalgo’s Chief of Staff Alex Triantaphyllis and Policy Director Wallis Nader along with co-defendant Aaron Dunn were charged with misuse of official information and tampering with government documents in connection with the canceled vaccine outreach contract.
Hellbound and Down 